A Weekly Devotional – Promise/Vapor – Personal Meditation

A Weekly Devotional – Promise/Vapor – Personal Meditation

Comment: If you know the Word of God, or at least familiar with the New Testament, you ought to be knowledgeable of these words. Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, “if the LORD wills, we shall live and do this or that.” But now (instead) you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. Therefore, for him (or her) who knows to do good and does not do it…

Devotional: In five more days the world will experience a NEW YEAR. What do you think? Most of the public world already have 2018 spent seeking desire and pleasure, yet they do not know what a DAY may bring forth. Boasting about tomorrow is like walking on a cloud, or worse; ignoring the truth that our vapor of life has promise. However, the promise is not in how much we plan gain or lose tomorrow, but what God has God has already planned for those who love Him.

Psalm 103:11-14 has an interesting thought about the love of God. What earthly father fails to pity his children, very few indeed. The children respond in reverential fear (love). The LORD’s pity in this verse is mercy, holding back what one deserves by providing grace to the undeserved. Mercy working with grace produces the love of trusting faith.

Meditating on this someone like the apostle Paul might pen these words in Romans 8:18-30; when looking at verse 28 we see the reason God causes all things to work together for ‘good’ to those (His children) who love Him and are called according to His (The Father’s) purpose. We see clearly that it is not the promise that man plans for himself, but what God has already promised to us who love Him.

Now in closing, check this out! 1 Corinthians 2:9 – But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man. The things which God has prepared for those who love Him." Do we fight and quarrel for the plans and promises of the coming year and for the desires and pleasures of tomorrow that seek to steal the promise of Life? …to him or her it is sin. See James 4:13-17.

A Weekly Devotional – Names – Personal Meditation

A Weekly Devotional – Names – Personal Meditation

Comment: In the Testaments of the Holy Bible, that is; the Old and the New, God reveals Himself to us by His NAMES. There is no other name, that is; the fifteen names and His variations in the Old Testament or the seven names of the New Testament that is given among men by which WE MUST BE saved. There are four, three from the Old and one from the New Testaments that we will look at this morning. O.T. “El” (singular), “Elohim” (plural), “Adonai”, “Yahweh or Jehovah” N.T. Jesus. There is one other name that sends this important message, “Immanuel or Emmanuel” and the message is “God with us” and lest we forget it, God is always with us.

Devotional: At Christmas these days, we miss the mark. Recently our Pastor finish a study of the book of Amos and in chapter 7, verse 7-8, the LORD said to Amos, “Amos what do you see?” Amos answered the LORD and said, “I see a plumb line”, God is Merciful, El Shaddai – the Almighty God, He is powerful, able to save and to comfort. God is Most High, El Elyon – the Sovereign God.

God is Jehovah Jireh – the provider, God is Jehovah Sabbaoth – the LORD of hosts (armies), and He is Jehovah Shalom – the LORD of peace. God is Jehovah Tsidkenu – the LORD our Righteousness. God is Jehovah Nissi – the LORD is my banner. The keeps me safe in the daily battle. God is Jehovah Maccaddescheem – the LORD our Sanctifier, last but certainly not least God is Jehovah Rophe, the LORD who heals.

Now the plumb line of God in the days of Amos means something different to Jeroboam, just as it did in 2 Kings 21:13 when Manasseh became king at the age of twelve. The plumb line that I wish for us to consider this Christmas is this. God, the LORD is the same God of yesterday and today. He will also be the same God of tomorrow and forever; Hebrews 13:8. His Name is: Jesus – The LORD is salvation. Jesus Christ/Messiah is the “I AM” without Him you are left to live life on your own. Merry Christmas.

What kind of Christmas will you have this year?

What kind of Christmas will you have this year?

Most of us have a thought or a plan for this Christmas, your thoughts and plans are personal. Do you know that God has an ongoing plan for Christmas and not unlike you, His plan is personal too! Whatever your view or concept of God is, God has a plan for you. But His plan is not a plan that any of us will ever seek in seventy or eighty years, His Christmas cannot be changed or amended. It is His plan and it is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb 13:8), His Christmas plan began before there ever was a universe including the Earth our temporary home. Some would argue that the earth and universe was created roughly six to seven thousand years ago. However, like God’s Christmas, Creation is NO LIE!

God prepared His Christmas event over six thousand years ago, before there ever was an EARTH. John 17:1-5 God’s Christmas is God’s Son; as if you did not know this, His Name is Jesus Christ, or Jesus Messiah, He is the One who is the same, yesterday, today and forever.

God’s first mention of Christmas is revealed to us in Genesis 3;14-19. Now you say, I do not see any reference to Christmas in these verses, true because our common human view of Christmas misses the mark. God’s plan differs from ours, take a look at verse 15. The first mention of life through the “seed” of the woman is in ‘lower case’. All borne into the world, whether man or beast is in lower case, but there was one “Seed” born of the woman whose Name is Jesus, “Emmanuel”, He is God’s Christmas.

Continuing from Isaiah 52 and 53, God decorated His Christmas with ornaments of the world. Beginning with verses 13-15. As I read, I will point out the highpoints of this important passage of scripture that was written by the prophet Isaiah about 2800 years ago.

God’s ornaments are not what we expect, as the Father has laid on His Son the iniquity of us ALL. What a sight! Bruised beyond recognition, if we saw Him, like the world sees Him, we would despise Him and reject Him. He was broken and afflicted, He was physically wounded. Why because we like wayward sheep ran away. His ornaments are your sins and mine and for the entire world. In this He was afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. Like a the Lamb (John 1:29), He was led to the slaughter.

Matthew 1:1-25 – this Child is the Son of God. God’s Christmas Event, He is “also” the gift of God the Father for all who believe, therefore I am not ashamed of Him, I have received Him as a gift from God and as scripture reveals my sins are taken away. I am forgiven as my sins were placed on Him, as yours was too, you only need to believe and trust the message, as it is impossible for God to lie.

Titus 1:2 – In hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began. Also see Numbers 23:19.